One of the first things I noticed about Japan upon arrival was how clean it is. Every street, park, train station, playground, and sidewalk was in impeccable condition with no litter. However, I was baffled by how they keep their surroundings so clean with minimal public trashcans. As I got accustomed to Japan, I loved seeing the appreciation the people have for their environment. It was great to learn how Japan burns the majority of its trash at incineration plants. While visiting the Hikarigaoka Incineration Plant, we learned how the Clean Authority of Tokyo collects, transports, processes, and disposes of Japan’s trash.
Within the 23 Cities, each municipality is responsible for waste management, this change was enacted in 2000 when responsibility shifted from Tokyo Metropolitan Government to the 23 Cities. The Clean Authority of Tokyo has authority for intermediate waste treatment such as incineration, and must comprehensively plan with the Cities for processing. Each city determines collection days for household waste disposal and is free of charge. Chargeable waste removal includes business and large-scale wastes.
One of the first operations we observed while at the plant was garbage trucks dumping their waste into the combustible waste platform. The trucks backed up to extremely large doors which opened to a waste pit that could hold up to 20 meters of trash. In the pit, a large claw reached down, picked up trash, and dropped it back down in order to mix the waste and make the trash more uniform and level. When it was time to incinerate garbage, the claw would grab it and carry it to a large hole that led to the incinerator. The incinerator burns the waste at a temperature of over 800℃. Burning at such a high temperature has environmental benefits such as limiting dioxin release. Within the incineration plant are giant boilers that use the heat energy to produce electricity which is used to power the plant itself and sold to power companies.
Dangerous gases such as dioxins, mercury, and hydrogen chloride are byproducts of burning trash. These gases are removed from the exhaust by moving through a series of filters and a gas scrubber which cleans the gas with water and neutralizing chemicals. The clean gases are then released into the environment through the tall stack.
Japan’s cleanliness can be explained by many reasons; education, cultural values, government involvement, recycling, and religious influence. Children are taught in schools and their homes to keep their spaces clean and take responsibility for their surroundings. This responsibility continues into adulthood and is a large aspect of Japanese culture. Government initiatives encourage people to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Charging extra for shopping bags and separating their trash into components are ways that Japan reduces and recycles their waste effectively. I was surprised the first time I went to a 7-Eleven and they asked if I needed a bag and then charged me for it. However, I came to appreciate using my own reusable shopping bag and it’s a practice I will apply in America. If America could implement an incineration system like Japan does, I think we could see less litter in the streets and decrease our reliance on landfills. Urging the importance of cleanliness and enforcing fines, extra charges, and increasing waste education could all benefit the environment. I hope America learns from Japan in this regard.
